2020 Subaru Legacy Problems

What owners report

Among the 80 sampled owner complaints for the 2020 Legacy, most center on the windshield, which many owners describe cracking from an edge or the base without a visible impact, often while the car was parked or after a cold night. The rest are mostly electronics-related: infotainment units that restart or freeze, batteries that drain, and occasional loss of power or warning lights, with a smaller group on CVT shudder or jerk.

1. 1
   Visibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)

   Windshield cracks without a visible impact

   • 72 complaints (60%)
   • median 5,579 mi at 1.0 yrs old (40 state mileage)
   • filed 2020–2024

   Owners describe a crack starting at the edge, base, or corner of the windshield, sometimes with a pop heard first and no chip or object found. Many say the crack spread over hours or days, often across the driver's line of sight near the EyeSight camera area, and several report it happened while the car was parked overnight or after a cold night. Some owners had the glass replaced and saw the same thing recur; complaints also mention dealers attributing the crack to a rock or impact the owner could not find, or saying the replacement was the owner's cost. Mostly reported on low-mileage vehicles, often under about 10,000 miles and sometimes within months of purchase, with several describing a cold overnight or a stationary driveway situation.

   What to check: Inspect the windshield edges and base closely for fine cracks or repairs, and ask whether the glass has ever been replaced. Ask whether the EyeSight camera recalibration was done after any replacement.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “As I was getting onto the highway, the windshield was struck by a rock and left a decent sized chip. As I was driving throughout the rest of the day, the cracks began and got longer everytime I looked at it. It goes right in the view of the right eyesight camera. I have reviewed plenty of similar issues with cracks forming in Subaru's windshields.”

   NHTSA complaint #11325715, filed 2020-05, 1,450 miles

   “While driving on a highway I noticed a small crack on the lower corner of the passenger side windshield that appeared for no apparent reason. I didn't hear anything hit the glass. By the following morning the crack extended from the lower passenger corner to the center of the windshield making it nearly two feet long.”

   NHTSA complaint #11355373, filed 2020-09, 1,580 miles
2. 2
   Vehicle speed control

   Loss of power and warning lights while driving

   • 13 complaints (11%)
   • median 16,200 mi at 1.5 yrs old (9 state mileage, few)
   • 2 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2020–2025

   Owners describe all warning lights coming on at once and the vehicle dropping to a much lower speed, refusing to accelerate normally, with one report of the car being hard to shift into park afterward. In other cases the car slowed on its own under cruise or emergency-braking warnings, or accelerated unexpectedly at low speed in a parking lot. Complaints say dealers were unable to reproduce the problem or found no stored codes. Reported mostly under about 10,000 miles, often while driving at speed on a highway, uphill, or in a parking lot.

   What to check: Test-drive at highway speed including an uphill stretch, note whether any warning lights appear, and ask whether any diagnostic codes were stored or previously cleared.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I was driving on a four lane section going uphill on us50 in california where the speed limit is approximately 60 miles per hour. The car suddenly slowed down to approximately 25 to 30 MPH. All attempts to increase the speed to 55 to 60 MPH failed. I safely pull over and stopped the car and turned it off. It was restarted, and the problem did not occur again.”

   NHTSA complaint #11413828, filed 2021-04, 7,650 miles

   “I was driving on the capital beltway in silver spring during evening rush hour going approximately 60 MPH when the vehicle started to slow down on its own and the warning lights on the dash associated with the emergency braking system ( which causes the car to abruptly stop if you are going to crash) started to flash. It lasted about 5-10 seconds . I did not take my foot off the gas or brake the car. Then it accelerated on its own to 60 MPH.”

   NHTSA complaint #11352881, filed 2020-09, 4,300 miles
3. 3
   Electrical system

   Battery drains and the car will not start

   • 7 complaints (6%)
   • median 1,000 mi at 1.6 yrs old (1 states mileage, few)
   • filed 2021–2022

   Owners report the battery going flat and the car failing to start, sometimes after the vehicle sat for a few days or overnight, and in one case after idling with the radio on. Several had the car jump-started repeatedly, and complaints mention dealers advising the owner to drive the car more often rather than identifying a cause. Typically reported within the first couple of years and often under about 10,000 miles, often after the vehicle sat unused for days.

   1 related service bulletin

   What to check: Ask about battery age and any history of repeated jump-starts, and have a parasitic-draw test done if the car is often left parked for days.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “The battery discharged to the point where I was unable to start the car. I had been driving all day and was waiting for my wife for half an hour with the radio on. This left us stranded about 15 miles from home. I had to call to have someone take my wife home while I waited for a tow truck. My battery also discharged to the point where I couldn't start my car after the car sat overnight. I needed to take my son to a doctor's appointment, and I had to cancel the appointment. And no, I didn't leave the lights on or a door open.”

   NHTSA complaint #11462088, filed 2022-04

   “We were gone for 10 days. Our Legacy was left under carport (North end of garage/shop). Upon our return, we found the battery was drained. We have only 7362 miles on it. I bought it new in June 2020. We tried to charge the battery, but the charger stopped charging and the red trouble light came on. We had to have the car towed to the dealer in another city. They mentioned that we need to drive car often and not leave it sit or this will happen. Luckily, there was no trouble only a drained battery, but it was an inconvenience. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11436707, filed 2021-10

Buying note. Check the windshield carefully and ask about replacement and EyeSight recalibration history, then verify that the transmission and rearview-camera recalls were completed. A short test drive covering highway speed, an incline, and stop-and-go use will help surface the powertrain and driver-assist complaints owners describe.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.